Friday Night Layouts

Remember the double layout that I posted last time for the Midweek Mojo Rose #6? I was the random winner this week for posting it! I am excited to see what goodies come my way from Scrapbook Steals.

Went out scrapping last night and managed to get 3 layouts done (amongst all the laughing and joking around - saw some old friends I hadn't seen in a while as well as my regular crew). It was a fun night and these are the fruits of my labor:

I basically went out with a bag of stuff and decided that I was going to find a way to use what I had with me. There was no plan - did not know which pics I would use or what color schemes. All I had were 2 sketches for this week's Midweek Mojo (Rose #7). So, I found a set of 3 pictures that needed to be scrapped together and just looked through the stash I brought. I ended up using a thick cardstock that had glitter dots all over it for the background. Then I layered a patterned paper from Cosmo Cricket (Social Club - Manhattan) and a sheet with a material texture on it (I don't know what company made it - there were no labels). The stripes were kind of cute. Once I put those together, I matted the pictures with black cardstock and stuck them all in place. I had a pack of gemstones from a local Dollarama and found some other scraps for the circles up top and the journaling down below. The Thickers for the title are Roller Rink glitter letters. Voilà! Page #1 done!

The next one was also from the Midweek Mojo this week:

Again, I went through the things I had brought with me and this is what I ended up with (I think it's really cute!). My youngest daughter loves playing with hair bands. She loves to put multiple bands on her head and run around OR she only puts one on - across her eyes! She is definitely one to walk to her own beat. Oh boy...Anywho, the papers used were s.e.i's Jocelyn (background stripes), Bo Bunny's Crazy Love and another material sheet I had that said "girl time". The Thickers were Basics glitter foam letters in leaf and the star was from The Girls' Paperie (vintage whimsy). It came together pretty quickly and I love how fun it is.

My last one was not based on any sketches. It is a picture of my oldest daughter from about 2 years ago at an all-day crop. She LOVES my friend, Karin, and always gets excited when she knows she is going to see her. This is a picture I have been wanting to scrap for a while, but I just never seemed to have papers that seemed to be right. Last night I finally found the right mix: Authentique's Gathering:

These papers just seemed perfect and allow the picture to be the focus. Look at those smiles! Erica likes to play Hide 'n Seek with Karin (whom she called "Ka-yin" at the time) and always went for walks together after lunch. I'm glad I took this picture because it shows their close bond :)

And that was my Friday night. Anyone else have any fun projects they are working on?

A Craft Box and 2 Layouts

Tonight was productive! I started out by working on the labels for a gift for my daughter's friend - she is having a birthday party tomorrow. I bought a plastic container that will be filled with craft items. Because she loves butterflies, this is what the labels looks like:

I used Bo Bunny's new line Primrose because I didn't want the butterflies to be too "young" looking. Tyra is turning 6 and I want this to be a box she can use as she grows up. I fussy cut the butterflies and stuck them on the honeycomb patterned paper. I then used different alphas to stamp out the title. I have no idea what lines they were as they were part of the stash at my LSS. I inked the edges and then stuck the labels on each side. I hope Tyra likes her gift!

Then I moved on to layouts. I had 3 Mojos to catch up on for Scrapbook Steals and managed to get them all done tonight. Here is the first one I did. It is based on Rose #3 and #6.

I used the following papers: My Mind's Eye Abbey Road (Let's Go), Fancy Pants Rusted Sun (Indian Summer) and Crate Paper Pink Plum Collection (Peach). They all worked beautifully together. I used Tim Holtz's Distress Ink in Vintage Photo to ink all the paper edges. This was fun to put together and allowed me to scrap some old pictures.

My next layout was for Rose #2. I decided to try working with colors I don't normally put together. At first I thought it was going to be hard, but once I got started, it came together pretty quickly:

Funny thing, the day of this mojo posting, they were featuring Echo Park papers. Go figure that I ended up using Echo Park's For the Record line for this one. The cardstock is Bazzil and I used a black marker to outline everything. I love that picture because it shows the playfulness of my oldest daughter. She is too funny!

So another Friday night come and gone...I am glad I got a few things done!

This week's Projects

Two nights ago I decided I wanted to work on some Mojo sketches from Scrapbook Steals. I did a double layout using Rose #1 and Rose #4:

Here is the list of products I used:

• Patterned papers: Doodlebug Design Inc (the blue and green striped sheets), Moxxie ("costume change" - background papers), Fresh Print (plum stripes), Paper Pizazz (the purple sponge finish) and another one from my stash that I couldn't identify
• Tag: My Mind's Eye (So Sophie)
• Alphabet stickers: My Little Shoebox (mini alphas in mermaid), Making Memories (tiny alphas in pink ledger), AC Thickers (glitter foam in Lullaby)
• Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (black soot)

All that is left on this layout is to add the date.

Here is a layout I did tonight based on Rose #5:

 This one was fun to do because I used one kit, so literally all the pieces on this came from Authentique (Gathering). I must admit that I normally am not a fan of their papers because I find the colors too muted and subtle, but this kit was one that I got in a swap and they are definitely colors I like to work with. I am really happy with the end result (especially with the fussy cut flowers from one of the sheets). Orange is such a happy color and the light aqua off-sets it quite nicely.

Then I moved on to making 2 birthday cards tonight. They are very simple (again, I struggle with cards). I am happy with how they look. They will be added to the stash at work for colleagues' birthdays:

I started with a more masculine card because those tend to be the hardest for me. I used papers in my stash (no idea of what lines I used) and then used the sentiment stamp from Stampin' Up and a tree stamp at Scrapbook Centrale. Inked the edges with Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Vintage Photo and voilà! Next I did a more feminine card and again, did not know what papers I was using. This one was easier for me to put together because I loved the colors:

I added a chipboard flower and doodled around the edges of it with a black pen. The edges of the papers were stippled with paint. Easy to put together, but still pretty.

And now it is time to go to bed...phew! That was a lot of creativity in a short period! Just wait until I post the canvases I started working on tonight...

March ATCs

Another ATC swap this month. There was a vote on the theme and I wanted Mardi Gras, but the majority went with spring. Since we can choose not to do the theme, I decided I still wanted to go with Mardi Gras. Here is the first step:

I started with cardstock in limeade (my favorite green in all the cardstock - I have used it for a ton of projects). I then painted with green and purple Maya paints. I decided to go to the Book Market and buy a cheap used book to use the pages for projects. I made my own template for a mask and cut it out. I adhered it to the card with matte gel medium (from Golden). Then I decided to use a new product I just bought:

This stuff is A-MA-ZING! It goes on looking all dull and grey, but when it dries...

I love texture, so I love the effect the black lava gives. I then decided I needed something to finish off the edges. Stamp and ink were the next ingredients:

Now, what is Mardi Gras without some beads? Enter Golden's glass bead gel. Now this effect is much more subtle, but gives a cool texture as well. I added just a bit to each card (in 3 spots). Here is what it looks like:

I like it! And here are all the finished cards:

I will be shipping them off this weekend (on time!). I can't wait to see what others came up with :)